Realistic and even happy with his tenth starting position (eleventh time, but gains a place due to Checo’s sanction), Fernando Alonso claimed to have been above expectations of the team in the Montmeló qualification. He spoke of a new World Cup starting with the Hungarian Grand Prix and warned that they will suffer in Barcelona, Austria, and Silverstone that is coming up now.
The ’14’ drives an Aston Martin, designed by a new technical team (2023), trying to add performance to the car. However, sometimes they don’t add much, and the car becomes more difficult and complicated to drive. This is how it has been working together for a year and a half.
Alonso is very calm, but the present is what matters in racing, and the present is today. This team has been in the unification phase for a year and a half, but he thinks they are now in a strong position going forward. The present is what is painful, but he is calm with the performance.
They have had a complicated weekend, full of ups and downs. They were 14th and 18th in training, especially yesterday in FP2, where all the simulations are done, which is not ideal. However, today they made some changes, and the car seemed to go better, but they still have a long way to go.
In the end, finishing in 11th or 10th position with the sanction to Checo, and being on the verge of points, is a better result than they expected. They had serious doubts about Q1, but they managed to scrape through and even made Q3.
“We have to work a lot,” Alonso said. “We have to fight for each race, and if it’s just two points, four points, one point, we have to score them all.” He also proposed aiming for podiums and finishing the year on the podium.
Aston Martin wants to fight for podiums and finish the year with a podium. They know it will be tough, as there are strong competitors like Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren, and Mercedes. However, they are not giving up and are hoping for a change of fortune starting in July.
Alonso is looking forward to Hungary, hoping for a new World Cup and a chance to start fresh. He admits that it’s a bit like saying so, but they have to think big and aim high. He also jokes that if it rains in Austria or Silverstone, things might change, but for now, tomorrow is a race to know how to suffer and score points.